Review Blog

Mar 09 2010

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Text, 2009. ISBN 9781921656149.
(Ages 14+)Recommended. Chosen by the American Library Association as one of their
2010
Best books for young adults, Wintergirls is an unflinching
and
very frightening look at eating disorders. Lia is haunted by the death
from bulimia of her best friend Cassie who had sent her 33 messages
before she died. She is consumed with guilt because she didn't answer
the phone and relives some of the moments that she has shared with
Cassie as well as the struggle that she has with anorexia nervosa.
Anderson has written about a difficult subject in a confronting and
honest way. She describes Lia's descent into the depths of her
disorder, her lies and her feelings about her parents, stepmother and
stepsister . Everyone who has ever dieted will be familiar with the
counting of calories : a muffin (410), an orange (75); and the hard
grind of a treadmill to wear off even more calories. Lia takes dieting
to a new high, always striving to lose more weight and even cutting
herself to forget the shadows that surround her. It is a frightening
portrayal of an intelligent young woman who has been unable to cope
since the death of her grandmother and her parents' divorce.
Lia is offered all sorts of help: she is hospitalised; she visits a
psychiatrist; her mother is prepared to sell her stocks and her father
to get a second mortgage to pay for her medical expenses. However,
Cassie's ghost seems to sit on her shoulder, encouraging her to lose
weight. It is not until she reaches the depths that she confronts
the idea of staying alive.
This is a compulsive, honest and disturbing book.
Pat Pledger